FILM: JORDAN & EDDIE (THE MOVIE GUYS)’S ANTI-VALENTINES PICKS

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Jordan and Eddie are two Aussie beer loving mates ,who have grown up submersed in cinema man-spread out in front of the TV together… and love nothing more than discussing and analysing it. They also have their own YouTube channel and blog of movie ramblings. As they’re boys who share a love of shit VHS horror and nineties slack films like we do, we asked them to make up their ultimate anti-Valentines picks for us.

Here’s what they psyched on below:

JORDAN:

Clerks (1994)
Directed by Kevin Smith. Budget of $230,000

Dante, Randall, Jay & Silent Bob, rooftop hockey and an “I Assure You We’re Open” sign. With Clerks, Keven Smith kicked off the View Askewniverse with all the pop-culture laden dialogue and mundane daily observations he could muster, tinged with his own outwardly childish ideas that managed to strike a chord with a wide audience also receptive to its pioneering style and relationship candidness.

Dreamed up while standing impatiently in line at a hardware store, while the crowds swarmed around him, Tobe Hooper’s reflection on an America inwardly imploding amidst the violence of War overseas was shocking in 1974 and remains so now.

May (2002)
Directed by Lucky McKee. Budget of $500,000

Though their collaborations remain relatively few in number, Lucky McKee and actress Angela Bettis have shown that their combined talents can produce striking results. May, a modern-day Frankenstein of sorts that hinders on the audience’s perception of its titular character, is their finest creation, being an indie-horror tale that is equal parts moving and unsettling.

Harvey Pekar wore the distinction of the most disillusioned, every-day American hero, with his daily observations and battles with monotony captured in the renowned American Splendor graphic novels. The film, starring an on-from Paul Giamatti and creatively structured with narration from Pekar himself, is painfully honest and darkly humorous; a fine example of independent film-making utilised to truthfully depict a subject matter without glamour or compromise.

Repo Man (1984)
Directed by Alex Cox. Budget of $1,500,000

“The life of a repo man is always intense” mumbles Bud to the newly initiated Otto, though even the wiry delinquent can’t have guessed this to mean radiation, government conspiracies and a surprising John Wayne revelation would soon follow. Repo Man is a cult film that defies any other categorization, driven not only by its wacky plot and ideas but also the interaction between the legendary Harry Dean Stanton and Emilio Estevez.

EDDIE

Moon (2009)

Budget – $5 million

Duncan Jones hugely impressive Sci-Fi debut that features a standout Sam Rockwell performance is a showcase for big ideas overcoming budget limitations and while the filmmaker hasn’t yet made good on his talents shown here, Moon will always remain a classic of the genre.

Monsters (2010)

Budget – $500,000

At one stage reported to have had a budget under $10,000 before extra money was spent on post-production after positive receptions around the world, Gareth Edwards (the man behind new Star Wars hit Rogue One) Sci-Fi that was filmed incognito around various locations is a standout monster flick with homemade special effects that put some Hollywood blockbusters to shame.

Donnie Darko (2005)

Budget – $4.5 million

While it may forever defy a pigeonholed explanation, Richard Kelly’s independent cult hit that was a failure on its initial run only to become a home video hit is a brilliantly bizarre experience that made a star of Jake Gyllenhaal and made Kelly a name to remember. It’s a shame since his feats here that Kelly has failed to find his true mojo in the Hollywood system.

Memento (1999)

Budget – $9 million

Showcasing the brilliance of director Christopher Nolan’s imagination and film prowess, Memento with its twisting plot devices and memorable outcomes is the very definition of what independent films should be, brave, daring, unique and unforgettable for it.

Pulp Fiction (1994)

Budget – $8 million

The biggest daddy of the independent scene and a film that has spawned many an imitator, Quentin Tarantino’s dialogue heavy crime opus that remains forever re-watchable is for good reason an inspiration to many a budding filmmaker that is looking to capture the gold QT mined with this classic.